Foresters Financial and Whole Kids Foundation Rejoin Forces to Green Up Communities Across the US, Canada and the UK

Foresters commits $45,000 USD to 14 organizations and expands this initiative to include projects in Canada and the UK

TORONTO, April 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - Foresters Financial™ (Foresters), the fraternal life insurer boldly redefining the industry through innovation, purpose and wellness is proud to rejoin forces with Whole Kids Foundation, a nonprofit established by Whole Foods Market dedicated to improving children's nutrition. Together, Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation will help 14 organizations across the US, Canada and the UK develop their edible learning spaces through $3,000 garden grants and hands-on support. Foresters will fund 15 grants for a total of $45,000.

On March 18, Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation collaborated with Enrich LA, a community wellness non-profit organization that builds edible gardens for youth and families, to kick off the Grow It Forward Garden Grants initiative. This collaboration will help Lovelia P. Flournoy Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA. Foresters member volunteers joined teaching staff, students and parents to help construct an edible garden at the school.

"We're incredibly proud to widen our partnership with Whole Kids Foundation and to support these important programs across the US, Canada and the UK," said Louis Gagnon, President and CEO of Foresters Financial.  "Providing opportunities to give back to our communities, and helping our members do the good they want to do through Foresters grants, is an embodiment of our core values that inform and differentiate our business. I'd like to thank the Foresters members, employees and all those who've participated – or plan to participate – in these special events."

Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation have scheduled the following events in the US to coincide with National Garden Month in April. These events will take place on Saturday, April 29 to construct edible gardens:

• Boston, MA – Victory Programs, Inc.*
• Cincinnati, OH – Stewart Elementary School
• Greensboro, NC – Positive Direction for Youth and Families Inc.
• Los Angeles, CA – Enrich LA at the 118th Street Elementary School
• Seattle, WA –Tilth Alliance*

An additional US event has been scheduled on Saturday, May 20 in Detroit, MI where Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation will construct an edible garden at Mackenzie Elementary School.

In the UK, Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation, in partnership with School Food Matters, a charity that teaches children about food and campaigns for healthy, sustainable school meals, will construct edible gardens at the following locations on Saturday, May 13:

• Birmingham – Bramford C of E Primary School
• Bristol – Hannah More Primary School
• Chelmsford – Whitehill Primary School

In Canada, Foresters and Whole Kids Foundation have scheduled an event on Saturday, June 3 to construct an edible garden in Calgary, AB at Phoenix Education Foundation.

In addition, Foresters and Farm to Cafeteria Canada, a charity transforming how food is experienced, learned and celebrated in schools across Canada, will construct edible gardens in two more locations in Canada on Saturday, June 3:

• Montreal, QC – École primaire Louis-Dupire
• Surrey, BC – Harold Bishop Elementary

"Edible gardens are powerful hands-on spaces that connect neighborhoods with fresh food, encourage meaningful learning experiences, and inspire life-long healthy eating habits," said Chanta Williams, Interim Executive Director for Whole Kids Foundation and Whole Cities Foundation. "Foresters shares our passion for advancing community nutrition and wellness, and together, we are helping to amplify locally driven fresh food initiatives."

For more information about Foresters and other member benefits, please visit Foresters.com or go to cpp.ca for more information about Canada Protection Plan. ¹   

Bringing a better, new normal to everyday families, Foresters offers a suite of unique member benefits¹ and is redefining the conventional life insurance model. Member benefits include Foresters Go, opportunities for scholarships, orphan benefits, community volunteer grants, document preparation services for creating wills and other legal documents, Lifelong Learning, MemberDeals, and more.

Foresters Financial is quietly transforming the life insurance industry across the US and Canada by enriching the lives, communities, and overall well-being of its members. Agents and members alike appreciate the turnkey-decisioned product offerings and end-to-end digitized processes that make it easy to get life insurance without traditional medical exams (insurability depends on answers to medical and other application questions and underwriting searches and review.) State-of-the-art mobile tools help agents deliver tailored plans to prospective and current members. Unique to fraternal life insurers, Foresters offers a suite of member benefits, redefining the conventional life insurance model and bringing improved financial security and overall wellness to everyday North American families. Foresters recently merged with Canada Protection Plan to become a leading life insurance distributor in Canada. Foresters Financial is the trade name for The Independent Order of Foresters, the oldest non-denominational fraternal benefit society. For 22 straight years, The Independent Order of Foresters has received an "A" (Excellent) rating from A.M. Best.² 

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For information purposes only.

™Foresters Financial, Foresters, and Helping Is Who We Are, are trade names and/or trademarks of The Independent Order of Foresters (a fraternal benefit society, 789 Don Mills Rd, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3C 1T9) and its subsidiaries.

Canada Protection Plan is a trademark of Canada Protection Plan Inc.

417334 CAN/US (03/23), 417334 FR (03/23)

Whole Kids Foundation supports schools and inspires families to improve children's nutrition and wellness. Founded by Whole Foods Market in 2011, the independent, nonprofit organization is based in Austin, Texas, and serves schools and organizations in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. For more information on the Foundation's school programs including school gardens, salad bars, beehives, and nutrition education for teachers, visit wholekidsfoundation.org. For ongoing news and updates, follow Whole Kids Foundation on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn. 

Whole Cities Foundation works alongside community-based organizations to improve neighborhood health through collaborative partnerships, nutrition education, and broader access to fresh, healthy food. Founded by Whole Foods Market in 2014, the independent, nonprofit organization is based in Austin, Texas and has partnered with more than 250 community organizations in more than 130 cities across the U.S. to build thriving local food systems and improve health. Through vibrant grant programs, Whole Cities Foundation supports community gardens, urban farms, pop-up produce stands, agriculture skills development, farmers' markets, mobile markets, healthy cooking classes and other community-directed initiatives. For more information on the Foundation and its programs, visit wholecitiesfoundation.org. For ongoing news and updates, follow Whole Cities Foundation on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn.

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SOURCE The Independent Order of Foresters